Five Years
by LotrHpHoo
Summary: High school AU. When he was younger, Matthew met a strange boy. Now, five years later, they accidently meet again. Involves the adventures of Matthew, Gilbert, Alfred and other characters.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Sometimes he would watch him from across the classroom. He was always busy, surrounded by friends. Never alone... Matthew felt the pen in his hands scratch across the paper, outlining a faint circle, then a line. It gradually formed a roughly oval shape. Then some eyes, and a mouth.

He tried not to think too hard about it. Really, it was just a glance...

every now and again. Across the classroom.

Sometimes... sometimes, he would glance back. And the other boy would smirk, just a little, as if he knew what Matthew was thinking. All those swirling, tumbling, messed up thoughts in his head.

He glanced up again. He was looking. Blood red jewels staring. Staring across the classroom. Matthew quickly looked down at his desk again, heart thudding and a blush rising on his cheeks. He didn't understand; nobody noticed him, he was always left out. He was the one left standing at the bus stop when all his classmates had gone on a trip, the one who had to speak his name twenty times a day to be remembered, the one... the one... who had no-one.

So why did this boy, who had so much, so many friends and admirers. Why did he keep staring?

"Hey," A sharp voice jolted him from his thoughts. "Matthew right? I'm the awesome Gilbert! I'm from Prussia!"

Matthew gaped upwards, dumbfounded. A boy with snowy hair and paper white skin stood over him, smirking. A boy with blood red eyes. The boy.

"I know," he spoke again, "some people take a while to adjust to my supreme awesomeness, but don't worry, I have time."

"P-Prussia?" Matthew managed to stammer out. "I thought-"

"Shhhh!" The boy leaned closer and put one long pale finger on Matthew's lips. "We don't want to get off to an unawesome start ja? The awesome Prussia is not to be questioned!"

He hoped he wasn't blushing. This strange boy, who he had only known for a few days, was actually taking notice of him! His finger was on his lips! He wanted to jump up and sing, express his overwhelming happiness! Unfortunately... he never had been very good at, well, making his feelings known.

Instead, he stammered, "I- I'm sorry. um..." Then mentally cursed himself for being so horribly inept. Why! Why, was he so awkward!

"Kesesese!" What? Matthew looked up startled towards the strange almost hissing noise entering his ears. He paused when he saw the source. The boy... was laughing?

" You're funny birdie! I think I'll call you birdie, ja! Your hair is just the same colour as Gilbird's! Kesesese!"

Matthew didn't really understand what this boy was talking about. Nor did he get why he was laughing so hard, but, he just couldn't help the small smile that slipped onto his face.

Maybe this year wouldn't be so bad.


	2. Old memories

**Chapter 1**

"BRRRRRRRR!!!" The school bell rang loudly, announcing the end of the day. Another long, long day. Matthew sighed; that memory was so long ago. Days just seemed to merge together now, nothing standing out against daily repetitive routine.

Thud! something heavy suddenly shoved into him, sending him sprawling. His shoulder throbbed in pain as it collided with a locker, his glasses falling off. Ow! Squeezing his eyes shut, he attempted to shut out the pain. It didn't work.

By the time he'd opened his eyes, the previously bustling corridor was mostly empty, just a few stragglers making their way towards the school gates. He winced and clambered to his feet. Alfred would be waiting, he knew, and he didn't want to cause a bother. His twin could get extremely whiny when bored.

As he walked towards the exit, the tarmac floor of the carpark beneath his feet, he remembered. He thought about that time, almost five years ago now, when he'd had a friend. It seemed alien now, a foreign concept, but he could never forget…

Red eyes, a smirk. When they slipped that letter onto the teacher's desk and ran away giggling. When they pretended Matthew was invisible for a laugh. Gilbert had always made it seem so funny.

"Make way! Make way for the awesome disappearing boy!" He'd cry and Matthew would giggle as people looked their way, then hide behind Gilbert to avoid their stares. Life had never been better.

His brother didn't like the Prussian boy much. Alfred would always sneer, or get jealous, pulling Matthew after him as he stomped off home. It was silly really, as it wasn't like Matthew spent much time with his twin in school anyway. He supposed it was just because Alfred was used to having him all to himself. Even at ten, he hadn't exactly mastered the art of sharing yet…

Gilbert was interesting. He was new. And most importantly, he was the only friend Matthew had ever had. Six months they spent together. Six months messing around, playing video games, helping each other, just basking in the happy sunny days that the summer and autumn seasons brought. But… but only six months…

" Hey birdie." He had sounded sad, quite unlike his usual egotistic self. " Um vell, mein Bruder and I… vell," he looked down at his feet. Matthew was nervous. If anything could make his friend look like this, it must be bad. " Vell, father decided that… it..."

"W-what is it Gil? I don't understand." Even to himself, he had sounded terrified.

Gilbert looked up, so they faced each other. Violet eyes met ruby, and in that moment there was a mutual understanding. This time, Matthew stared at the floor.

"You have to go? Don't you?" he whispered.

"Ja."

And in that one word, everything was broken.

Gilbert's father worked in a large business selling some appliances, Matthew didn't remember, but his job involved a lot of traveling to different chains around the world. Whilst they had originally lived in Germany, Gilbert and his younger brother Ludwig had spent time in most countries around Europe, from France to Denmark, to Spain. It was in England that he met Matthew. It was a miracle, really, that Gilbert had stayed six months at all. Issues had come up, and the family had stayed. but deep down, Matthew had known it wouldn't last forever.

His childhood had been full of doubts; this was no exception. Ever since Gilbert had crossed that classroom towards him, he'd been scared. It wasn't that he didn't he didn't love the times they spent together, it was just… he didn't want to be left alone… again.

And now, with that one word, all his fears had come true.

It was quick. Within a few days, the bags were packed and Matthew was standing there waving at the departing car as Alfred stood there sullenly next to him. He cried a bit, but not much. In his head, he prayed that it was all just some big misunderstanding, that that silver car would just skid around on it's wheels and drive back to him. But it didn't. And he just stood there waving, a single salty tear on his cheek, watching it slide away.

And away… and away.

Matthew shook himself out of his thoughts. It does no good to dwell on the past, he reminded himself, it will only bring you down.

"Hey dude! You took forever! I was seriously considering that you'd been kidnapped by aliens or something!" Loud and obnoxious as ever, he thought. Out loud he just sighed,

"Let's head back, ok? Promise I won't be late again."

They started walking, the familiar English streets seeming to pass by in a blur as Alfred happily babbled on beside him. He hadn't always lived in England… he remembered.

"And then, you would never guess! Mathias got the ball, and literally whacked it right across the field, hitting Lukas in the head, like dude, you would not even believe how mad that kid was!!"

"He's the same age as you Al…"

"You should have seen! Mathias was sooooooo dead!" Matthew laughed alongside out of politeness as his thoughts wandered. Maybe he'd make pancakes when he got back… then go and read in his room. Hmmm, that sounded nice…

" Dude! You're not even listening to me!" Alfred whined.

"What?" He looked up, "Um sorry?"

"Huh. Never mind, I was just saying, mum messaged me in maths today, it was really annoying cos it went off really loudly and my phone was confiscated."

Matthew was grabbed by this, as their mum never messaged them during school hours. Something must be up.

"What did she have to say?" He asked promptly.

" Uh, it was actually kinda weird," Alfred replied. They crossed the road across from the store and started up the pavement, picking up haste as they neared home. " She said something about, uh, making a decision? And she had some pretty important news to tell us when we got back."

The house loomed up before then now, looking considerably less welcoming now he had heard the message. All he could think to say as he advanced up the steps was:

"Well maple."


	3. Bad news

**Chapter 2**

The door slammed shut behind them, just like it always did, but this time it seemed like a bad omen, like in a horror movie, when the main characters are locked in. Well, Matthew never had been much good with surprises. The tension built up around him; he was nervous, he would admit, and he shivered slightly as he hung his bag up. Alfred was humming across the hallway: some theme tune from a movie.

Well, at least one of them wasn't affected.

His mother stood in the kitchen, her work badge still on. Miss Williams, it read. Some people at school found it weird that he and his brother had different last names. His childhood was complicated and, to be honest, he didn't like to speak about it much. From moving around Canada with his mum, to meeting Alfred for the first time, things couldn't have been more stressful. But he was here now, in England, and that was all that mattered.

The kettle was already boiling in the corner, the piercing scream cutting through the previously silent kitchen.

"H-hey mum." Matthew stammered out. Why was he so nervous?

"Hey mom!" Alfred shouted, "Can I have the ice cream from the freezer?"

"No," replied his mum simply. "That's for tomorrow."

He went over to open the freezer and take the ice cream out anyway. Miss Williams just sighed, used to her son's antics and turning a blind eye this once.

Y-you said that, um," Matthew spoke quietly; obviously everyone else had forgotten. "I mean, you messaged Alfred, and… um…"

His mum turned to him, smiling slightly. Alfred watched with his mouth full of food.

"Well, darling, I know I should have asked both of you first," she started to say, "but I was talking to this teacher at school. You know the one: the wavy hair and boots-"

"Mrsm Roebshmf!" butted in Alfred. Matthew corrected him:

"Mrs Robin" he said.

"Yes, that one." Their mum paused momentarily. "She said there was an exchange student programme with the school, to do with building relationships with other countries and such… and well…"

Matthew felt his heart sink down past his shoes, and bury itself in the ground. If this is what he thought it was…

"Well, I thought it would be brilliant if-"

"No way!!!" Alfred yelled. He stood up suddenly, the spoon clattering to the tiled floor. "You said we could take one in didn't you!" Mrs Williams smiled meekly. "That- that would be so cool!!!" He ran up and hugged his mum, "You make the coolest decisions mom! I'm gonna go sort out my room, they can sleep in mine right? I gotta get it sorted! See ya!" He spun round bounded up the stairs, joy written all over his face. Well that was quick. Alfred was fifteen, bordering sixteen now, but he sure didn't act like it..

Matthew was left facing his mum across the table. Right now, his feelings were the exact opposite of his brother's; he didn't want to let some stranger into his house, be forgotten whilst his brother made yet another friend. He always tried so hard to be welcoming, but instead, was pushed out himself. In the back of his mind, he realised he was being unreasonable, he should probably give it chance: nothing that bad could happen right? Yet the doubts kept running through his mind…

He tapped his finger on the back of a wooden chair, then ran his hand across it, feeling the slight grooves and knots beneath his skin. There was a flick of blue paint on the wall over there. How had he never noticed it before? How did it get there?

"Matthew."

"Yes."

"Try not to stress too much, I know you don't really like this, but the school, they were running out of options." She walked round the table too meet him. "You never know, you might make a new friend."

Matthew felt his fists clench in infuriation. Didn't she understand? Nobody. Nobody wanted to be friends with Matthew.

"Maybe… I, I just-" He tried to form the words with his mouth, but they just wouldn't come. "How long will they be staying?"

"About a few weeks dear." She closed the distance between them and Matthew felt himself being enclosed in his mother's arms. It was nice, but not very helpful. Nodding once, he slipped out again and made his way upstairs.

"It'll be fine Matthew!" His mother called after him.

T

His room was cold. The radiators were never on because of money, and, since the house was Edwardian, the heat just seemed to seep through the old brickwork. Wrapping a duvet around him, Matthew shuffled over to his desk and slumped down on the swivel chair, pulled out a notebook and started to doodle. His homework forgotten, he began to sketch out a face, just like he had so many years ago. Eyes, mouth, eyelashes, chin, nose, neck. He wasn't brilliant but he got the general idea down.

He drew a picture with Gilbert once. It was for the induction leaflets for the new kids starting school; nobody really wanted to do it and, well, Gilbert had never been one to hold back. He'd wanted to put the Prussian flag on it, with little saucepans round the edges (something to remind him of an old enemy, he said) but Matthew reminded him that it had to be about the school, and that Prussia didn't really exist now anyway, so it was pointless.

He got into a bit of a state about that. Matthew chuckled slightly as he remembered.

His picture was almost done now, just the eyes to colour in. He picked up the red pen.

T

"What do you mean we're going to be separated?!"

"Young man, if you would just calm down please-"

"I will not calm down! I specifically requested that we were sent to the same place!! As if I wanted to join this unawesome program anyway!"

"Bruder, it's fine, calm down."

"Be quiet, I have to sort this unawesome mess out!"

The office room they were crammed into was small but smart, as was the senior teacher who sat in it. Stupid man. Couldn't he get this one job right? The man opened his wrinkled mouth again and smoothed out his suit:

"I am very sorry boys," He didn't look sorry. "But a new option has come up. The family have room for one and you are the only two left. Your options are limited."

He almost growled at the man. Ok, maybe he was a bit overprotective of his brother sometimes, but seriously, what if they fired them off to opposite sides of the country?! They had the power…

The school he went to now was rubbish, completely inept, just like all the others. However, his father insisted on dragging him round every high achieving school across Europe, like it was some sort of unawesome hobby of his... and now this. As if he didn't travel enough as it was.

"I refuse to go. I've had enough!" He exclaimed suddenly. His brother and the wrinkled man looked up at him.

"You can not just back out now, boy, you've paid-"

Awesome, he thought, I don't care. "And the forms are all signed-"

"Bruder." His younger sibling interrupted. "I'm going anyway. So… so you can stay in the house, on your own, if you still vant."

What? No. Sneaky brother, he knew he wouldn't let him go on his own. He probably just doesn't want to waste the money his stupid father spent on this trip. Nevertheless, he gradually lowered himself back into his chair.

"Fine. Whatever. Just, make sure we're nearby okay..."

"There's only so much I can do to help that you know." The man grumbled. He felt his temper rising again but it was quickly shut off as his brother stood.

"Sorry for the bother sir," he apologised, "come on Gilbert, we're leaving."


	4. Countdown

**Countdown**

Four days

School was hard. Usually Matthew got by, his marks were fine, he supposed, and it wasn't the lessons themselves that particularly bothered him…

"Um, excuse me, um, sorry," Matthew tried to raise his voice, "if you don't mind, could you please get off me?" He struggled to push the big kid off, cursing at his weak arms. This was the second time today.. It wouldn't be too bad, maybe, if Ivan had just been a little… lighter? "Excuse me!"

"What?" Finally. "Oh sorry! I didn't see you."

"Like everyone else…" Matthew grumbled under his breath.

"Won't happen again, da?"

Matthew sighed as the Russian got off him; it wasn't the first time he had heard that today.

Three days

Saying Alfred was excited was an understatement. The amount of questions he asked was unbelievable:

"What country is he arriving from?"

"Wait, are they gonna be a boy or a girl?"

"When will they get here?"

"Can I bring Arthur over to meet them?"

"Do you think they'd prefer the superman or the iron man bed set?"

"If they can't speak English, can we all sit round the table and speak really seriously like something terrible has happened and then pop a load of party poppers like SURPRISE!!!"

"NO ALFRED!" yelled his mum. "JUST- just calm down! For heaven's sake…" Alfred curled up on the sofa looking like a dejected puppy. Matthew sat reading in the corner, wishing they'd both just shut up.

Two days

With only Thursday and Friday left to go, plans were made to pick up the exchange student from the train station. From the airport, whoever it was would travel alone until they reached a larger station only a short drive from the house. Alfred would be busy that day, at some American football game, so it was just Matthew and his mum traveling to meet the new boy. At least, they assumed it would be a him…

Matthew finished his art homework and thought instead about Gilbert. He wondered what he was up to right now. How much had he changed? He wished they had some sort of contact, like on social media or something, but it had been so sudden, and well, Matthew hadn't even had a phone back then. It could have been so different.

One day

Friday was stressful. Really stressful. If being called up to read a speech in front of the whole class wasn't bad enough, having no-one remember who you were really put the icing on the cake. Being accidentally locked in the art supplies cupboard didn't help either…

By five o'clock, Matthew was tired, angry, and altogether kind of freaking out about the next day. The more he thought about it, the less it seemed like a good idea. Who even invented the practice of shipping kids around the world to study at different schools anyway? It- it was just ridiculous!

Crash! His door slammed open.

"Hey Mattie!" His brother called, "I just reached level twelve! You gotta come down and see all the new upgrades I've got! Dude, it's insane!!!"

"Maybe if you stop screaming like a deranged fool." Honestly, he was not in the mood right now.

"Hey Matt, whats got you all wound up?" Alfred looked kind of hurt and Matthew felt just the tiniest bit bad at his outburst. He shouldn't take out his own anger on other people.

"Sorry, I just… it's nothing" he mumbled.

His twin shuffled forward, then slumped down on the bed next to him. "Don't be nervous about tomorrow," he murmured. "He's gonna be great, I promise. And… I know I'm not always there for you." he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, and carried on. "But these two weeks are gonna be the best, I'll make sure."

For a deranged fool, his brother could be quite insightful.

"Yeah." Matthew whispered as Alfred got up and left.

Saturday.

"Matthew! Wake up!" Light flooded the room as the curtains were almost ripped off their hooks. He groaned and shuffled further towards the wall, hugging the duvet close to his chest.

"Matthew! Now! The train arrives in 45 minutes! It's a half an hour drive!"

What? Train station. There was a train station in the book he read last night, yes… that must be it. He'd just pick up his owl and suitcase, then they could catch the train; he wondered where he'd left his wand…

Ahhh! Cold air smacked into him as the covers were pulled away, his mother frowning down at him.

"What? No, aunt Petunia, put… p-put them b-back" he shivered.

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about, but if you don't get up right now," his mother warned "I'm going to have to leave without you, we can't keep the exchange student waiting."

Oh. Right.

Reality came crashing down as he stumbled to get out of bed. Student. Train, yes, he remembered now. What was the time again?

Oh. He stood there for a second, gaping at the silver minute hand of his bedside clock.

*

Forty minutes later, they stood on the smokey platform, breath streaming in the biting wind. The train would arrive soon. His mum chattered happily beside him as he wrapped his striped scarf tighter around his neck. Two minutes left…

His mum reached into her handbag and took out the homemade sign she'd drawn yesterday. It read: 'Exchange student. Welcome to England!' in big, bold printed letters. Matthew just hoped she wouldn't embarrass herself any further. The seconds ticked down and, in the distance, the train began to chug towards the station. The electric noises whirred as it got closer, brakes squeaking and gas spewing as it pulled up to the platform. The doors opened and it's passengers spilled out. So many people! Matthew began to doubt that the homemade sign would be enough, in this crowd they'd need flashing fairy lights and a loudspeaker to attract attention. His mum held up the piece of card anyway as they both tried not to get swept away. Though, as people moved towards the exit, the area gradually emptied until only small groups of the less speedy people were left. He looked around, but no one seemed to stand out as his age...

"Hi," A voice sounded from behind them, it sounded familiar, with an accent. "My name is zhe awesome Gilbert, Prussian exchange student, at your service. I saw your sign."

Something switched on in his brain. That voice. No, not even the voice: the words. Matthew stood frozen in shock. He couldn't turn around, he couldn't breathe, couldn't think. There… was no way…

His feet moved of their own accord, bringing him face to face with another boy.

White.

Red.

Simple words registered in his mind. Everything was a tumble of emotions, cascading around his brain, filling every nerve with numbness. He stood like a statue as his mum spoke first,

"Oh, you must be who we're looking for then, nice to meet you!" She held out her hand and the boy smirked, taking it. God, that smirk.

"A pleasure to meet you Ms… um…"

"Williams," She smiled. Gilbert frowned as if that meant something to him, then glanced at Matthew. His breath hitched. Matthew felt as if the world was imploding, he couldn't handle it. Not after five years. But the boy just kept frowning, as if something didn't quite fit right. Matthew's mum seemed slightly put off at the growing tension, but didn't mention it.

"This is my son." She said. "And we'd better get going."

The car ride was tense to say the least. A constant mantra of 'he doesn't remember me, he doesn't remember me' repeated itself over and over in Matthew's head, consuming all other rational thoughts. He didn't understand, why didn't he recognise him? Gilbert had been the biggest part of Matthew's life, he didn't go a day without thinking about him. Maybe I've just changed, he thought, I mean, it's been five years…

And then it clicked. Gilbert didn't remember him because he meant nothing to him. Gilbert always had friends, he was always with other people. Why should he remember the small, pale haired boy he knew for just under half a year? Crushing weight descended upon Matthew. How could he have gone on so oblivious for so long? He was so stupid, stupid!

"Huh?" Something grabbed his arm from the passenger seat beside him. He jolted upwards.

His heart began to thump as scarlet eyes stared into his. He was looking; looking straight at him. Gilbert opened his mouth slightly; did he look… nervous? His face had changed, more angular, sharper, less like the round ten year old he remembered.

"I-" he started to speak. Matthew's eyes widened.

"I... Matthew?"


	5. Re-introductions

Chapter 4

"A pleasure to meet you Ms… um…"

"Williams."

"Ms Williams." That name. It was familiar, so very familiar; but it had to be a coincidence. Gilbert furrowed his brow, confused.

There was another person standing next to Ms Williams; he turned to greet him.

It was a boy, and his face was even more familiar, with slight bone structure, framed with longish blond hair. He was looking at the floor, terrified, as if he was about to have a panic attack, and Gilbert felt a sudden rush of sympathy towards the strange boy. Did _he_ cause this distress? He hoped not…

Someone was speaking. Words echoed in the background, unclear, like they had been recorded on an old tape. He just caught the ending:

"-get going." And his feet blindly followed the family along.

The car door slammed shut behind him and they pulled out of the carpark. Dreary roads and dull countryside shot by though the window, but it meant nothing. Could this person sitting next to him really be someone he had once known? He stole a glance to the left, but the boy was glaring down at his lap, face hidden.

He strained his memory; he'd travelled a lot, and met a lot of people, but none of them stood out from the crowd... No. This was different: he just knew.

He never liked to make close friends in any of the schools he went to, due to the simple fact that it hurt too much. He had a motto: Just stick close to your brother, he would remind himself, that is all that matters. Sure, he was never the loner at the back of the classroom. He was loud, egotistic. Surrounded by people that either thought he was a laugh or a stupid joke. He hid himself behind the mask he created.

It wasn't always like that. When he was younger, in his hometown, he'd had two best friends. He'd pretty much known them from the day he was born, and grew up alongside them, pranking people, messing around. Their little German town was a strange place for the three of them. A Prussian, a Spaniard and a French boy. It didn't matter to Gilbert. They would always stick together, he didn't care about anything else. When he was nine, they'd given themselves a name: the bad touch trio. It was Francis's idea mainly; he was always the smart one in the group.

That was about the same month his father had gotten the job. The job meant his father had to travel. It meant they couldn't stay in the little German town he was born and raised in. He had to say goodbye.

Throughout the next year, Gilbert and his brother had gone through seven schools, six different homes, and lived in three countries. He quickly learnt not to get attached to anything. It was painful, and Gilbert found it hard every time.

But then they'd moved to England. Neither of the brothers had been looking forward to it, since they knew it would be for at least four months, and the longer you held onto something, the more it stung when you let go.

Nevertheless, they went to school and settled in. Like they did every time. But… there was this boy. He remembered.

Little stolen glances. Bright blue eyes, with flicks of purple. They were the strangest he had ever seen. And… he just couldn't help himself.

They were friends, he recalled. Best friends, something special, something more. And Gilbert had shut it all out because he was selfish; he didn't want to remember. Just because it hurt.

But now, this boy sitting beside him. He was so similar, he had brought back those memories. Maybe, if he could just look at his eyes… Impulsively, he grabbed the boy's sleeve and he spun round, stunned. His eyes were purple. Yes, everything was coming back now.

He tried to form the words. What was wrong with him? He always had something to say! Instead he stuttered,

"I-I… Matthew?"

It was him. He knew it. Why hadn't he seen it before?

The boy replied quietly, his face nervous looking and strained,

"Y-you remember me?"

"Ja." He said faintly

"I thought I'd n-never see you again…"

"Ja." Stupid unawesome Gilbert! Say something awesome!

"You've changed a lot birdie."

Arghhhh! That was not awesome enough! What are you meant to say to someone you were really close to, then left for five freaking years! He desperately tried to correct himself,

"I mean- not in personality! Your personality is still awesome! But like, your face… and stuff…"

If anything could have corrected his blunder, that was not it. However, Matthew seemed just as nervous, fiddling with the cord of his hoodie.

"You've changed too… I never expected..." Gilbert just gazed open mouthed. He'd forgotten how soft and quiet Matthew spoke, like a wisp of wind. He found it beautiful.

"It's just round the corner now boys!" Ms Williams called from the front seat, shattering his thoughts. "Gilbert, when you get in, you can shove your stuff in Alfred's room, that's where you'll be sleeping, and then I thought Matthew could walk you round town! Get to know the area a bit!"

He was about to say that he already knew the area, he'd lived there for half a year! But then realised that Matthew's mum didn't know that. He couldn't actually recall meeting her before. If he had, there was no doubt she would have remembered him. It was hard to forget the albino Prussian.

He lurched slightly as the car pulled into the gravel driveway, a simple, brickwork, terraced house in front of him. He stepped out the car, slamming the door behind him. Matthew stood on his left. It all felt a bit surreal.

At that moment, Ms Williams appeared, dragging his loaded suitcase up the front steps.

"Just put this up in Alfred's room dear, Matthew can show you where it is."

"Ja…" Gilbert lifted up his bag, and soundlessly followed Matthew up the stairs and down a landing. The door at the end was open. They stepped through.

"Y-you'll be sleeping in here. Alfred h-has bunk beds." Matthew stammered. As he dumped his stuff on the mattress, Gilbert felt pained at how frightened Mattie sounded. Previously, after being friends for a few months, the shyness had dropped and he'd become more comfortable around Gilbert. Now, it felt as if he had lost all that. Back to stage one. He realised that he didn't want Matthew to be nervous around him. Whether he liked it or not, they were going to be friends again.

Ja… that sounded awesome.

*

"Kesesese!! That place was awesome birdie! Who knew that the till would catch fire if you split water on it! It defies all the unawesome laws of physics!!!"

"Ha, ha… ahhh. Yeah…" Matthew had forgotten how… insane Gilbert could be. He sadly patted his wallet, now a whopping sixty pounds lighter. Well, he was glad someone found breaking supermarket tills amusing…

Gilbert stopped laughing and looked down at him, seemingly only just noticing Matthew's forlorn expression.

"Oh! Here's the money I owe you for that!" He exclaimed "Sorry, I was too busy laughing at the awesome expression on the till lady's face!" He looked dead serious for once and Matthew couldn't help but feel touched that he was willing to pay; _he_ was the guest at their house. He replied carefully,

"It's fine, really. B-but if you want to…"

"Don't worry about it," Gilbert reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out some cash. "Take it."

"Oh, okay."

He smirked

"You can use it to buy the till lady a new dress." Matthew went red in embarrassment. It wasn't his fault that the fire had kind of… spread.

*

They were originally walking through the shopping centre, at Gilbert's insistence, to get some "funny British souvenirs". However, since his money was now all spent, they were stuck, and just kind of wandering aimlessly in and out of shops.

"This is boring, birdie." Came Gilbert's whining voice. Matthew couldn't agree more,

"We could go to the park?" he suggested.

"Ja! that sounds awesome!" Came Gilbert's immediate reply.

Kind of unusaully, the park was situated on top of a large mound, a winding set of steps up the side being the only route up. There used to be a castle there. An old 'motte and Bailey' with a keep and drawbridge, on top of the high hill. Now there was just grass and a couple of benches, but it had a good view of the town. Upon reaching the top, Gilbert ran to the edge and flopped down onto the grass, complaining loudly about unawesome steps. With a bit of hesitation, Matthew advanced over and settled himself next to him.

It was… pleasant. They had the hill to themselves; just the soft flutter of the wind blowing through their hair.

This time, Matthew spoke first.

"D-did you ever come up here? Before?" His heart pounded uncomfortably with nervousness. He always got like this with new people, but Gilbert wasn't new. Was he?

"Nein." He replied, rolling over so they faced each other. "Nein," he repeated, "never got the chance."

"Oh."

The words were so simple, yet they held so much meaning.

The clouds began to move in and the sun was covered, but they stayed there still. They didn't know the time, and they didn't bother checking, they just waited. Eventually, Matthew moved to lie down next to Gilbert and they watched as the sun began to set. All the reds and pinks and oranges flowed through the sky like a weaver's web of colour. They didn't say much. They didn't need to. They just watched as the sun fell behind the silhouettes of the buildings, because they were happy.

Happy to have found each other again.

 **a/n Thank you for your reviews so far. I have received them although they do not seem to be showing up on the site. When writing this chapter, I felt like it was progressing too quickly, so I'm wondering if I should slow it down a bit or whether it's okay. I'd love to hear your opinions. _**


	6. (Extra Chapter)

**Extra Chapter**

"God damn it!" Arthur swore loudly. "Stupid bus!" Alfred had to admit that this was a minor inconvenience. After much pestering and whining, he'd finally managed to convince Arthur to come and watch his match, only for this to happen. The bus had broken down.

As his team had made finals, the town they were playing in was quite a way: over half an hour of journeying still left. The team were grumbling and moaning, and the driver had climbed outside, and was now fiddling with the engine. Bored out of his mind, Alfred stood up and worked his way to the front.

"Marshal! I mean- uh sir! Is it gonna be fixed?" Mr Marshal looked up from his phone, glaring at Alfred.

"It might take a while, but yes. Now mind your own business. Stop making a fuss." A shout came from the back of the coach. The deputy head frowned. "And tell the others to shut up while you're at it."

"Yes Marsha- sir." Grumpy old git, Alfred thought. Not one pleasant word had ever passed through that man's mouth. Muttering under his breath, he squeezed his way back down the aisle; if they didn't get this sorted soon, they were going to be late…

Arthur had worked himself up into quite a fit. As Alfred made his way to the back, his friend turned to yell at him,

"That's it! We're bloody walking! I'm not going to miss your stupid game!" He grabbed Alfred by the wrist and started dragging him towards the metal doors, cursing angrily. "In the name of all magical unicorns, I swear we will MAKE IT!!!"

"Whoa, dude! Calm down-" Alfred protested weakly. "We can't walk! It's like twenty freaking miles away!"

"You forced me to come to this match! I will MAKE IT to this match!" Yelled Arthur.

"Dude, it's OK. The bus will be fixed…"

"Don't trust them Alfred… they'll tell you anything!" The rest of the team, and some fans, watched on silently. This much entertainment hadn't been seen in years.

"Art! Just shut up dude! You're making a scene!" Alfred loved his best friend, but he could be a lot to handle when he got into a state.

"Alfred…" he growled "I swear-! Ah!" The bus suddenly lurched forward, hurling Alfred straight into Arthur's chest, knocking them both backwards onto the floor.

"Ugh, Alfred… heavy!" Groaned Arthur, trapped underneath him as the bus was suddenly propelled forward. Someone at the back whistled. Alfred quickly scrambled off.

"BOYS!" Screamed a voice from near the driver's seat. Great, now they were in trouble."What the HELL do you think you're doing! The bus is moving you imbeciles!!"

Both boys staggered to their seats, fumbling with the belts to get them on as quick as possible.

"ALFRED! This was your fault! I warned you!" Oh no… this couldn't be good. "You're banned from today's game! For causing a scene!" Mr Marshal bellowed. Alfred mentally swore. And he thought the man couldn't get any crueller.

"Come on dude! It wasn't even-"

"SHUT UP!" He fell silent. The bus was running smoothly now, trundling along down the main road. It was so unfair…

"Uh… sorry. About that." He turned round to frown at Arthur, who'd begun to speak. "That was my fault." Arthur coughed slightly "And I want to apologise… for making a scene. I just- I just really wanted to see you play, you know…" he shut his mouth quickly and turned to face the window. Not fast enough for Alfred to miss the pink tint on his cheeks.

"It's fine dude."

"Hmph."

It turned out that eating popcorn on the stands and watching the match together, wasn't that bad after all.


	7. Maple Syrup

**Chapter 5**

Gilbert collapsed into bed. The duvet smelt strange, unlike his own, and the sheets were coarser than he was used to. From his position, he could flick the light switch off, so he reached over and turned the lights out. Mattie's brother still wasn't back yet.

For the first time since the morning, he thought about his brother.

Mein Gott! How had he forgotten! That was unawesome of him! He wondered if Ludwig was having fun. Well, 'fun' might be a bit too strong of a word; Gilbert doubted whether his stern brother ever really had 'fun'.

Was he having fun? It was weird, he supposed… The fresh sheets crinkled under his touch as he turned over. Is this what Matthew's sheets always smelt like?

Well that was a weird thought.

He let his mind wonder. Little images and flashes of memory flew through his mind. A blond curl. Violet eyes. A polar bear rucksack? Where had that come from? He didn't let it bother him too much as his eyes were already closing. He was slipping. Falling into sleep...

-T-

Matthew sat at the breakfast table, awkwardly chewing on some pancakes. He felt absolutely miserable. Pancakes just didn't taste the same without maple syrup… He prodded the dull circle of batter with his fork, lazily flipping it over and over.

"Not hungry birdie? Kesesese!!" Came a boisterous voice from across the table. Gilbert sat there: laughing that strange hissing laugh of his.

It was really… strange. Bizarre. Wonderful, being with him. Matthew wanted to say something; anything, to express his feelings, but… after yesterday, he suddenly felt incredibly timid again.

"Um… it's just…" He tried to speak up, but his voice came out just a whisper. "It's just… not quite right without maple syrup…"

Gilbert was silent, and Matthew didn't want to look up to see his expression. All at once, he realised just what a stupid comment that was. His hands began to shake. Why did he care so much what Gilbert thought anyway? He was always fine with his brother.

Screech! The sound of a chair sliding back jolted Matthew's head up. Gilbert stood there. He looked dead serious.

"Birdie!" He proclaimed. "We are going on an awesome mission to find the maple syrup! Right now!"

"W-what- eep!!" Matthew accidently let out an embarrassing squeak as the German grabbed his arm and started dragging him towards the doorway.

"G-Gilbert! What are you doing??"

"Taking you to the awesome corner shop birdie!"

"Ahh! You can't just drag me there!!"

"The awesome me declares that I can!! Quick! Grab your shoes, or else it'll all be gone!"

"Uh! Gilbert! It's a twenty minute walk!" Matthew began to giggle. This was just too funny. Gilbert countered him,

"Who cares?! The fate of breakfast and unawesome maple syrup-less pancakes depends on…"

He trailed off… Matthew glanced up, still smiling.

"What?" He grinned.

"Uh…" Was it his imagination or did Gilbert's face look pinker than usual? He coughed nervously.

"You smiled." Gilbert said.

"Oh." Matthew felt the smile on his face drop, and Gilbert glanced away, rubbing the back of his neck.

"it's just… so long. Since…" Gilbert still held onto his arm, his grip was getting rather tight.

" Uh, d-do you mind," Gilbert was still staring off into space. "Um… do you mind letting go?"

"What?"

"My arm."

"Oh! Ja, sorry, unawesome of me!" Gilbert spluttered, face turning red. Matthew fiddled with the cords of his hoodie; this had gotten awkward quickly. Then Gilbert spoke.

"We're still going to the corner shop birdie."

"Oh. O-ok." Gilbert paced over to the front door and slipped his trainers on. Matthew followed him, picking his coat off the hanger as he went. It _was_ quite a way to the store.

-T-

They walked next to each other down the narrow roads. The English town Matthew lived in was of average size, but, as Alfred often said, it hadn't progressed much since the 19th century. Most of the houses were at least Edwardian, some Victorian. The corner shop was in the centre of town, roughly about a quarter of an hour's hike away from the house. It gave them some time to talk.

Gilbert began to describe his time traveling, from when he had stayed in Hungary, to Denmark and then Austria. He'd met a lot of people, and Matthew became increasingly surprised that he himself had been remembered at all. It must have been incredible to travel so much. Gilbert spoke about his homes and the different houses he'd stayed in; about some time when his brother, Ludwig, had fallen out a tree and broken his arm.

And then Matthew told Gilbert about his life… um…

"There's not r-really much that's happened to be honest…" He stammered.

"Come on!" Prodded the German "Something at least mildly awesome must have happened whilst my awesome presence has been absent!"

That comment hit home, and Matthew realised just how lost he had been in the past five years. Without any friends. So alone… And then he realised that soon Gilbert would be leaving as well. They hadn't spent much time together, barely a full day, but already Matthew felt like he would break if the other boy left him.

"Nothing's happened." He said

"Nothing."

He suddenly felt like ranting. About all the people that forgot him. About being shoved against lockers. About living in the shadow of his better, more friendly twin brother. The hurt. The loneliness.

Instead, he just walked faster. The sooner they left this conversation behind, the better.

"Hey Mattie! Wait up! That's some awesome power walking right there!" Gilbert came jogging up behind him. "What were you saying?"

God damn it, he was persistent. Matthew turned round to glare at Gilbert.

"I said nothing ok. Let's go."

-T-

Gilbert didn't know what he'd done. Was it the whole maple syrup thing? The dirty plates he'd left in the sink? Something he'd said? He thought he was being awesome. But apparently not.

No! Now was not the time to be questioning his awesomeness! Mattie needed him! They sat together on the sofa after finishing off the considerably better (although slightly cold), pancakes with maple syrup. The TV was blaring; some boring news channel and Matthew sat sullenly, as far as possible from Gilbert on the opposite arm of the seat. He looked really grumpy. But kind of cute…

What! No! Thoughts about Mattie like that were not allowed! He shuffled himself to get more comfortable, so that he sat cross legged on the cushions, and tried desperately to rid himself of his thoughts.

At that moment, the doorbell rang. Matthew had told him that Ms Williams would be out working till past two, so this must be the brother back from his friends house. Come to think of it, he did remember Matthew having a brother…

He stayed still on the sofa as Mattie went to answer the door. Muffled voices (shouts?) echoed from the hallway. Coming closer...

"Hey! Dude!" A teenage boy slid into the living room on socks. "Are you the new exchange student?!" Gilbert beheld the energetic boy before him. Wow… he looked a lot like Mattie.

"Ja! I'm the awesome Gilbert!" He called back.

"Dude! I'm Alfred!" Alfred knitted his brows, "Do I know you?"

"Ja, ja. We've been through this, we met five years ago." Matthew appeared behind his brother (twin? They had to be twins…) in the doorway. There was still something off about him. Like he looked, miserable, but resigned to it. Whatever it was.

Meanwhile, Alfred looked ecstatic.

"Like, dude! We can totally hang out and watch a movie or skateboard or something! Do you skateboard? Sorry I didn't meet you yesterday, the bus broke down twice and it was super late so I had to sleep at Arthur's!"

"Ja, cool. Sounds awesome."

Alfred grinned, then raced upstairs to get changed and grab a movie.

Matthew came and sat down again. Gilbert thought he should probably say something awesome, just to cheer him up.

"So, who's this Arthur?" He queried. Good choice, he thought, as Matthew broke into a smile.

"Alfred's best friend since nursery. They fell out for a bit, when they were eleven, but they're friends again now." Then Matthew smirked and Gilbert was actually terrified at the expression of pure mischief on his features.

"Don't mention this," he grinned "but he's had a crush on him since he was twelve"

Gilbert stared for a second, then burst out laughing,

"Kesesesesese!! I have to meet this Arthur!"

Matthew smirked. "Funny thing is, I don't think he even realises it himself!"

"Kesesese!!!" Mattie started giggling too, until they were both rolling around on the carpet, clutching their sides. It wasn't even that funny, just a pent up of tense emotions being let out at once. Gilbert didn't care.

At that instant, Alfred thundered back in. Seeing them flopped on the floor, he stood, amused,

"What?"

"N-nothing! Ha ha!"

"Kesesese! Information denied!"

"Dudes! Not fair!" Laughed Alfred "Tell me!!!" He picked up a pillow from the couch, and chucked it across the room.

"Ooof!!" Ow! That hurt… Gilbert rose from his sitting position, glowering at Alfred.

"Mein Gott, you are so dead" he growled. There was a silk pillow to his left and he grabbed it.

"You're on!" Alfred smirked, but Gilbert could see him take a nervous step back anyway. From the corner of his eye, he could see Matthew gradually shuffling behind the armchair.

There was a seconds pause, then the room erupted.

-T-

"All of you! Yes, even you Gilbert! You're all fifteen, verging on sixteen! Is this the sort of behaviour you'd expect from someone your age?! No! I don't know where I went wrong! Honestly! I don't!" Miss Williams collapsed into the armchair, head held in hands. Matthew felt terrible. Alfred and Gilbert had the decency to look sheepish.

Matthew glanced over to the shattered TV. Admittedly, it hasn't been his fault; Alfred had tackled Gilbert and they'd both kind of… crashed into it. The broken pieces of glass and plastic still littered the floor, creating deadly traps if someone were to stand on them.

The TV wasn't even _that_ new. Only about four months old. Their mother choked down her tears. No, it wasn't that new… they just… didn't have the money for a new one.

She looked up suddenly.

"Just… Just get out." She rasped, "All of you. Now."

They traipsed towards the door. Matthew hung his head in shame. He knew it wasn't just the television that was causing her to overreact. Her job as a nearby village librarian was on the verge, and, being divorced, there was no other source of income. Her sons had just tipped her over the edge.

They walked silently down the street, not knowing what to do or where to go. Alfred suggested hanging out in the castle park, but Matthew disagreed. He didn't want his one good memory with Gilbert there tainted with this.

"Vell, we could go to your friends. Awesomely crash at that Arthur's house?"

"He's busy…" Groaned Alfred. "Some family outing. He's probably in Buckingham palace sipping tea with the queen or something stupid."

"Uh-" piped up Matthew "Well, we c-could go to, you know,"

"Ohh. No way!" Yelled his brother. Several passers by glared at him, annoyed at his outburst. To be honest, Matthew furrowed his brow. Sure, he got along with his cousin through the worst of times… and he was pretty certain Alfred was on friendly terms with him too but… Something must be up.

"Vat?" Asked Gilbert. "Don't tell me your brother is holding out on an awesome plan birdie!"

"It's just my cousin, Francis, h-he will probably be in…" Matthew snook a side glance at Alfred. He was glaring at a lamppost, scuffing his converse along the pavement as he walked.

"Kesesese! I had a friend called Francis once! He was French."

"Huh," Said Matthew, surprised. "Francis is French. Francis Bonnefoy."

If Gilbert could have gotten any paler, he would have. As it was, his expression told Matthew all he needed to know.

"Blond hair? Obsessed with fashion?" Gilbert choked out.

"Y-yes…" stuttered Matthew. "Don't t-tell me! You... know him too?"

"Ja! I think! Wow… this is like some crazy awesome memory town or something…"

Matthew almost felt like laughing, despite his still lingering guilt over the TV and his concern for Alfred. This was just too unpredictable! First he meets his childhood friend again, then it turns out his childhood friend also knows his cousin!

"What is he like now?" Gilbert asked.

Alfred, who had previously been sulking, spoke up,

"He's a massive flirt. And an idiot."

"Well…"

"Kesesese! Sounds just like him!" The three of them trudged down the road, spirits (mostly) lifted. Francis's house was just round the corner...

 **A/N Sorry for the wait. Holidays without WiFi are the worst...**


	8. Cakes and Rivalries

Chapter 6

The door opened wide. Francis stood in the doorframe, looking as ever, like he was expecting them.

"Guten tag! It is your awesome best friend Gilbert, back from the dead!"

Well… that was one way to introduce himself… Matthew thought. Francis stood there, looking blank.

"What?" He uttered, his immaculate composure shattered. Gilbert coughed loudly, and started again.

"Gilbert! Esteemed member of the Bad Touch Trio! I have awesomely come to make your unawesome life more awesome!!"

It was at the fourth variation of 'awesome' that Francis's void expression turned into one of recognition. His mouth opened wide,

"Mon ami! Gilbert! It 'as been too long!" He exclaimed.

"Kesesese! You haven't changed un-awesomely at all Francis!"

Matthew didn't miss his cousin eyeing down Gilbert as he held the door open for them to enter. They trudged in; the house was as elegant and tidy as always.

"Please, take a seat." Drawled Francis. "We 'ave so much to catch up on!"

The three guests sat down on the leather couch, Gilbert enthusiastically settling himself amongst the many fancy cushions. Francis popped into the pantry to get some snacks, and soon returned, carrying plates of biscuits and little cakes.

"Well…" He began. "This 'as been such a long time… How old were we? Ten?"

"Nine." Gilbert corrected.

"And… how come you are here now with mon petit Matthew?"

"Francis…" Matthew complained. "I told you not to call me that…" Alfred grabbed a cake from the stand and started to munch on it loudly.

"Honhonhon!" Francis laughed, "But you are so cute when you blush!"

"Wait." Butted in Gilbert. "You two are cousins? Cos that is a crazy awesome coincidence!"

"Ahhh!" Sighed Francis "We are like cousins by name, but not blood! Alas! We are not really related..."

"He taught me s-some French…" Said Matthew.

"Oh! Awesome!" Exclaimed Gilbert. He also grabbed a cake, and soon the room was filled with sounds of chewing. Crumbs dropped on the carpet. Both Matthew and Francis cringed slightly at the mess.

"So, um…" Matthew decided to bring up the topic of their current "homelessness". "Francis, we k-kind of need your help…"

Alfred spoke up for the first time,

"Like hell we need your help!" Both Francis and Matthew glanced at him in surprise. Something was definitely up. Alfred never shouted angrily like that.

Francis coughed nervously.

"This is not about Friday, non?" He asked, delicately. Alfred growled and went back to eating his third cake. Gilbert looked on, uninterested, until Francis spoke again,

"You were saying, Matthew?"

Two plates of cakes and sixteen biscuits later, the story was told and Francis sat, quite seriously, listening. He understood, probably the best out of all of them, other people, and when they might need space.

"I assume you will be staying over ze night?" He asked.

"Ja… that would be awesome. Do you still have that fold out couch thingy? That was so cool!"

Francis chuckled,

"Oui." He said.

-T-

The bed was lumpy. And hard. And too close to the window for Alfred's liking. That window was so damn creepy… He shuffled uncomfortably, pulling the sheets up to his chin. No way was he staying in this house another night! He heard Gilbert snoring from the fold out bed and Francis's soft snuffles in the corner. That bastard.

It had happened a while after he'd comforted Mattie.

"Yes." His twin had whispered, as he'd left the room, and Alfred was feeling pleased that he'd managed to help his brother out for once. It was usaully the other way round...

It wasn't that much later, only about half five, and Alfred was already bored of his computer games. He thought he'd drop round Arthur's; see how he was before the game tomorrow. Sure, they'd spoken only a few hours ago at school… but, he just liked to be certain.

It was chilly outside, so Alfred made his way quickly to his friend's, only pausing briefly to buy a quick snack from the graffitied vending machine near the park. He was chewing on a chocolate bar when he knocked on the door. Mrs Kirkland answered, dressed in an apron and saying something about Arthur being just upstairs.

"I think he has a guest," she'd told him "but I'm sure you can go up anyway, dear." That should have been his first warning.

But, as ever, he was oblivious. So he climbed the stairs.

Arthur's landing was carpeted. A soft cream colour that was squishy beneath his feet. Thinking back on it, Alfred wondered whether that was why they didn't hear him. Whether that was why…

He didn't pause to knock. Why should he? He never did. The door slammed open, revealing Arthur's bedroom.

Francis was there: that's what he registered first, and he had Arthur in a rather… compromising position. Their lips met.

At the sudden bang of the door however, they broke apart; Francis looking vaguely surprised, Arthur flushed . Alfred didn't understand what he felt next: a mix of fury, confusion, hopelessness. Wait. Arthur was gay?

He took a step back. This was all too much.

They stood there, stupidly, for what felt like a week, until Arthur recovered from the intrusion. He pushed Francis's hands away from him briskly, scowl automatically fixed back on his face.

"Bloody hell." Was all he said. Alfred gripped the doorframe. Why was he overreacting so much! Arthur could do whatever the hell he wanted!

He was going to kill Francis…

To his disgust, as he stood there in shock, Francis started to laugh. He was still leaning against the bed like he owned the place; the nerve of him! Did he think this was all some stupid joke! That he could just play around with Arthur whenever he felt like it!!?

"Honhon...hon… I'll leave you two to discuss things…" He smirked, making his way towards the door. Alfred clenched his hand into a fist. He- he was going to punch him all the way back to France!!! But then a gentle hand rested on the sleeve of his jacket, and he was dragged backwards. He tried to burn holes in Francis's silky blond hair as he disappeared down the hallway: wipe that smug expression off his face!

The grip on his arm was lifted. But he made no move to follow.

"I-I'm sorry."

Arthur's voice sounded soft, for once. And… actually apologetic.

"What for?" Alfred slumped down on the bed, refusing to meet his friend's eyes. "Do whatever you want with him… I- I just thought… you'd tell me…"

And he really did. After they'd fallen out, several years ago, he'd thought they were over any secrets between them. He thought they could tell each other everything… obviously not.

A nervous cough sounded from in front of him.

"Y-you know… I didn't…"

"You didn't what? Dude, seriously just say already." Alfred felt snappish, and pulled to the breaking point, not really caring about Arthur's feelings right now.

"I didn't… I mean, he was the one who… He kissed me."

"What…?"

"I didn't want him too. Honest." Alfred finally opened his eyes, but Arthur wasn't looking at him. He was staring down to the left, avoiding eye contact. Something was missing from the story, Alfred knew, and he wasn't sure how to react. He wanted to believe him; he really, truly did.

"Yeah," he murmured in a low tone, "he's an idiot sometimes…"

Arthur looked relieved, like he didn't expect Alfred to understand.

"Yes," He said suddenly "An idiot." then paused, "I'm still coming to your game tomorrow right?" Alfred sat himself up on the mattress, and replied eagerly,

"Yeah! Definitely dude! I didn't spend all that time persuading you to attend just for you to back out now!" He laughed slightly. It was a weak attempt at humour, but it seemed to work. Arthur chuckled along.

"Bloody hell, you're persistent…"

Alfred grinned. He wasn't quite sure what to think of the evening, and he knew Arthur was hiding something; but for now, he just wanted to pretend it didn't happen. The hurt he felt was surprising… He hadn't realised something like this would pain him so bad. All he wanted to do was forget.

But just wait till he got his hands on Francis… That bastard.


	9. School

**Chapter 7**

There was one major flaw in Matthew's great plan: at half seven in the morning, only thirty minutes before the first bell: waking up at someone else's house with no uniform, school bags or equipment, plus having to sort out Gilbert, (who had completely forgotten) was not exactly the ideal recipe for a successful morning.

"Ah! Francis! What are we going to d-do?! It'll take us too long to get all the way b-back home!" Matthew panicked, "we can't be late for school!"

"Mon petit Matthew! Calm down!"

"Dude! What's the problem!? We'll just turn up late!" Sounds of thundering footsteps and muffled shouts filled the house as the four teenagers scuffled round, flinging clothes on and grabbing bits of toast from the side board.

"Kesesese!!! We can just awesomely skive today right!" Yelled Gilbert from the upstairs sink, where he was attempting to brush his teeth by squeezing toothpaste onto his finger and scrubbing at his mouth. Matthew groaned, and tried to curl up into a ball. This was a nightmare!

"Gilbert! That does sound like a superb idea! Honhonhon!" Francis agreed, "We can all 'ang out in that bar down Regents street! There might even be some pretty ladies…"

"Like HELL I'm gonna hang out with you! You're just a good for nothing flirt!" CRASH!! Thud. By the sound of things, Matthew guessed Alfred had just fallen over the leather stool. Again.

"Kesesese!! That looked awesome!!! Do it again Alfred!!"

Ahhhh! Please just let this all be a horrible nightmare! Matthew flung his coat on and ran out the door.

The streets were already busy with school kids heading in the opposite direction as Matthew sprinted back to his house. He fiddled with the lock, slammed the front door open and raced up the stairs, picking up his rucksack on the way. Scrambling into his uniform, he quickly checked his phone for messages before running back down again. He figured he'd bump into Alfred on the way back, so he picked up his brothers bag as well before hastily locking the door behind him and stepping back out onto the street. Phew…

The three of them arrived at the school gates thirty seconds before they were locked, gasping for breath and leaning heavily on each others shoulders. Neither Alfred or Gilbert were in uniform, not having the time or suitable clothing. Somehow, Francis had gotten lost on the way, although Matthew had a sneaking suspicion that he may have found himself in the bar on Regents street… Never mind. It wasn't his problem.

Since Gilbert was the exchange student, Matthew figured they should probably head to the office to get him checked in,

"B-because," he'd said, "I don't really know what your timetable would be anyway…"

"Ja, sounds awesome to me!" Agreed Gilbert. Alfred decided to try and make it to first lesson, leaving Gilbert and Matthew to cut across the corner of the field on the way to the office. Matthew took a deep breath and cleared his head, now he could finally relax.

It just felt so normal. So right. As if they were back when they were ten again: best friends and actually enjoying life. Walking next to Gilbert like this was a dream. Gilbert cleared his throat,

"So… this is the school you go to now birdie?"

"Y-yes!"

"It looks kinda grim." Scowled Gilbert. Matthew sighed and scuffed his feet against grass as he walked. Yes, it was grim, but it was the only school in the area. With his grades, he could have gotten into the higher school in the next village, but despite his somewhat jealously towards his twin, he hadn't wanted to be on his own.

"Mmmm…"hummed Matthew. He decided not to go into details. Besides, none of that was bothering him right now. If only they could stay like this… just the two of them…

Gilbert's timetable was quickly sorted out. He had most lessons with Alfred, but only one (art) with Matthew. Matthew guessed that the school had decided to choose random subjects for Gilbert to take these two weeks, based on which classes were lacking students.

"D-do you like art?" Stuttered Matthew as they walked down the corridor, shoes making echoing noises in the empty space.

"Art is awesome." Said Gilbert, "But it's awesomeness is frightened of me! That is why the paints don't work!!"

"Um, you mean you like it but you're bad at it?"

"What!?" Gilbert spun round, scandalised. "Nein! That's not it at all! I'm cursed…" He whispered the last bit, and his breath tickled Matthew's ear, making him giggle.

"What?" He breathed.

"When I was younger, I was painting this beautiful masterpiece…" Gilbert sighed, "It was so awesome that my father and my little bruder could not look upon it. They avoided it, and eventually my father had to put it in the garage. Because it was so awesome." Matthew couldn't believe that was the real reason, but he went along with it anyway… "And then! One day, I was in the garage, looking for the birdseed, and I knocked a tin of paint over!! It fell unawesomely all over my beautiful artwork and the art gods have cursed me ever since!" Gilbert looked so sad, and mournful, that Matthew tried really hard not to laugh. He really tried.

"Mpmh.. ha…" he stifled his mouth with his hand, but it didn't work. He burst into laughter. Fortunately, Gilbert started to laugh too, and they climbed to the next floor, trying to choke back their snickers.

This is what school is meant to be like, Matthew thought. Not a mess of fear and loneliness, but a place where you can laugh, and have fun. Sadly, that had never been the case for him.

T

Matthew sat nervously on the side bench, occasionally being shuffled and pushed by the bigger, larger boys beside him.

God, he hated P.E. It was one of the things in life that just didn't make sense to him. Sometimes it would be okay, like when they did running laps around the track; Matthew could just about pull through and get an average time. Or when they were doing trampolining. That was fun. The other boys complained and said it was girly, but Matthew actually enjoyed it. No being hit in the head by balls and no getting kicked around. Alas, they had now completed that section for the year, and were moving onto team sports… Starting with basketball.

"Please kill me now…" he muttered. Unfortunately, no-one heard him.

The teacher blew the whistle and everyone got into their teams. They were pre-picked: Matthew was lucky to even get into one. Well, if you could call being forced to play lucky.

The whistle blew once more and the game began. To be honest, Matthew didn't much understand the rules. It was all a confusing tangle of dodge, run and OH MAPLE that big guy is running towards me what should I do! In the first ten minutes he managed to touch the ball exactly zero times. Success! He paused to take a breath, surveying his surroundings. Some people were running away from him, one guy was bouncing the ball, then he passed. Why was everyone taking this so seriously? All he wanted to do was curl into some corner and read.

He crouched down on the gym floor. He was so tired…

"Williams! Get back up and start playing!"

Wha-? Oops! He hurriedly stood up and- oh!

That hurt.

The floor spun up and his vision darkened as he crashed to the ground.

T

Gilbert sat in his maths class, trying to decide whether the day had been awesome or not. He'd made Matthew laugh again: that was awesome. But God damn it, this class was boring. The equations and sums swum before his eyes, forming little patterns and generally getting in the way. Who even needed this stuff as an adult? That's what he wanted to know…

That blue plus sign was talking to him, it was saying something about chickens. Chickens are awesome… Gilbert… Gilbert! Wake up!

"Wha-? I'm AWESOME!" The class stared blankly at him. Er… well this was awkward. "Kesesese. I mean, we're all awesome!" He tried for a winning smile, but his awesome charming skills didn't seem to be working today.

"Mr… Beilschmidt? Now that we're awake, do you mind shutting up." The teacher growled. "I understand that you are the exchange student and may not be used to ah, our… customs here, but could you at least try not to fall asleep in my lesson!"

"Yes sir!" He saluted. Mr whatever his name was frowned at him. Gilbert seemed to have a habit for getting on teachers nerves; he always managed to get into awkward situations. Back in Germany, he'd been alright. He was smart and got good grades, despite being a bit of a trouble maker. However, since then… He grimaced as his pencil drew circles on the blank paper. His anger towards his father and the constant touring around Europe had caused him to slip.

He sat there for the rest of the hour, and when the bell went, he jumped up and pushed his way out with the rest of the class. He suddenly wondered what the arrangements for walking home were. At lunch, him and Matthew had sat together on one of the picnic benches outside: was that where he should try and meet him now? He made his way there, battling against the rush of the crowd, but when he arrived, it was deserted.

Oh, well, maybe he was supposed to walk back to the house separately, he thought. Matthew had probably already left. An image of Matthew strolling home with Alfred, laughing at Gilbert's stupidity filled his mind. No! Now was not the time for unawesome insecurities! He scowled at the empty courtyard then turned his back on it, plugging headphones into his phone as he went. Some rock song was blaring through the earplugs and he tapped his fingers to the beat.

He knew the way back pretty well; the town was already familiar to him from before, so he took the long route along the canal. It was kind of grim, he realised, a lot more graffitied since he'd come this way last. However, the empty paths gave him time to think. The heavy crash of drums and bass guitar drowned out the noisy traffic ahead.

Matthew really had changed a lot in the time he'd been away. And yet, he hadn't changed at all. He was still the same quiet, nervous boy from before, yet, there was something else there too. Maybe it was a slight hint of passive aggressiveness, not quite as young and innocent as when they were ten. He looked different too; slightly longer hair, sharper features. Taller. He was… attractive, Gilbert supposed. It was just a shame that no one at his school seemed to notice him much…

It felt like no time before he was standing back on the front step, contemplating the freshly painted white door. He knocked twice.

But there was no answer. Maybe he was ahead of the others? Did they have some kind of after school club they unawesomely forgot to tell him about? He quickly knocked again, and waited.

One minute.

Five minutes.

Ten.

Thirty.

He was slumped against the wall now, perching on his smallish rucksack. Something was definitely up. If they had some sort of club they'd forgotten about, surely they would have messaged him by now? The numbers they'd swapped this morning were in his phone, just a touch away. But he didn't want to appear panicky or unawesome! His hands slipped into his pocket anyway, turning the music off and deftly flicking his smartphone on. He stared at the blank screen.

Then… there was a drop. And another. And another. Gilbert glared up at the darkening sky as fat raindrops started to splash down. That was it! He moved his finger towards the call button.

Beep! Beep!

Wait, a message had just come in. He opened it swiftly.

Message received: _Alfred_

 _Whr_ _the_ _hell_ _r u??_ _Matthew in hospital!_ Why _didnt_ _u_ _answer calls!?_


	10. Accident prone

**Chapter 8**

Gilbert stared down blankly at the phone screen. What. He read it again to clarify. Then again, because it didn't quite enter his mind the second time.

His heart suddenly started to pound; no way was this happening. No! Things like this didn't happen! Not to him! Not to Matthew! Things like this were reserved for over dramatised TV shows or strangers he'd never met. He stood up, his phone clattering to the pavement. He had to get there now! Where was the hospital? Which way? He almost screamed in frustration. Six months of living in this town and he didn't know where the hell the nearest hospital was! He snatched his phone off the ground and started to speed walk, not knowing which direction, he just had to move _somewhere._ His fingers tapped out a message as he walked.

To _Alfred_ :

 _What do u mean Matthew in_ _hospital!? Where?_ _Tell me where to go!_

Message received: _Alfred_

 _Across the roundabout outskirts of town. Dude, calm down k!_

Calm down!? How the hell was he supposed to calm down!!! The closest person in his life had been hospitalised! He was lost, drowning in panic. How? What? Why? He started to sprint towards the traffic lights. He knew where he was going now, just past a few blocks of houses. It was lucky they lived so close.

The closest person in his life.

Was that really true? Had he really just thought that… He had Ludwig, didn't he? His little brother who he had protected since birth, and his parents. Mum especially. Weren't family supposed to be the closest? They'd brought him up, connected by blood; they would always be with him in some way. And now he had Francis, his childhood friend whom he'd known for years longer than Matthew. Even Antonio, who he hadn't seen since forever. He'd known them all so much longer than Matthew.

But Matthew was special.

He knew it to be true, as he ran towards the stark white building ahead. Matthew was wonderful, perfect, awesome! He was different to all the others. Gilbert just didn't know how yet.

He skidded into reception, panting heavily.

"Matthew!" He gasped "I… have… to see Matthew…" The assistant at reception glanced up at him. There was something familiar about her face, maybe the look in her eyes, a hint of surprise; but Gilbert passed it off. She was just some random girl with a part time job right?

"Williams?" She asked politely.

"Yeah." His heart thudded against his chest. How would she react? What foreboding news would she reveal? But then, her features relaxed into a smile. She tucked her long brown hair behind an ear as she spoke,

"No need to worry Gilbert, Matthew is just fine. You'll find him in room 63 in the north wing." The lady pointed to the right and Gilbert set off. He relaxed a bit. Obviously it was nothing life threatening or unawesome like that. Strange… that lady reminded him of a boy he had once known. He didn't dwell on it too much though, as the numbers on the walls were getting closer to 63.

46

50

59

61, 62, 63.

As he hammered on the bleached door, he forgot completely about the girl at the desk, and never once wondered how she had known his name…

T

Matthew groggily shifted himself. His first thought was: Damn! My head hurts. And then he suddenly remembered he'd forgotten to hand his maths homework in. That was important, he'd better do that today… He tried to turn over to reach for his glasses from the side table, but his hands were stuck in the sheets. He wriggled, befuddled by the tangle of material he was wrapped up in.

"Glasses…" he whispered, "I… need…" He was suddenly aware of someone else's presence in the room. They were making noises… talking. He strained to hear them, and warily unsealed his eyelids.

Blurred shapes. There was more than one person! What were so many people doing in his bedroom on a Tuesday morning, that was what he wanted to know…

"Shhhh, dude, be quiet, he's waking up!"

"I can see he's waking up! I knew he would soon! My awesome psychic abilities told me!!"

"Matthew dear, are you okay?"

His eyes snapped open completely.

Damn. He still couldn't see! However, he didn't need to. He knew just by the voices who they belonged to.

"Glasses…" he muttered again. Somebody's hand brushed against his cheek as his framed glasses were slipped on. The white room came into focus.

The room was mostly blank; just plain walls with a few posters, definitely not his own. Some wires were hanging above the bed, little buttons beeped and flashed. Hospital he thought. Why am I in hospital? He didn't remember.

"Matthew! Darling!" Came his mother's voice, and two arms were thrown around him. He hugged her back, unsure of how to react to this situation. All he could think was: I don't remember.

"Oh, dear, I was so worried! The last things I said… said to you was-" she hiccuped and Matthew saw the red rims around her eyes that meant she'd been crying, "the last thing I said w-was to g-get out!" She wailed and clung on tighter, until Alfred stepped forward and pulled her back.

"Careful mom! You're gonna crush him!" He joked. "But dude. That seriously freaked us out! How the hell did you get knocked out with a basketball!?"

"A basketball…?" He paused, but nothing was coming back. The last thing he remembered was eating lunch. Cucumber sandwiches were gross.

"Yeah! You don't remember it?" Laughed Alfred "Gilbert totally freaked out when he found out! Ha! He sprinted all the way here!" Matthew turned round to look at Gilbert for the first time. He had his head turned slightly, and he was blushing.

"Kesesese… Vell, kinda…" Matthew didn't think he had ever seen Gilbert looking so shy before. It was quite adorable… He felt himself blushing at the thought and quickly looked away lest anyone notice.

"Ha! Dudes!" Yelled his twin. "You're totally blushing! Do you have, like, a thing going?"

Wow… okay… So he overestimated his luck.

"What!? No!" Shouted Gilbert! "What the unawesome hell made you think that!!"

Alfred started to laugh loudly and Matthew turned to see his mum's reaction. She just smiled grimly along. Strangely, Matthew felt kind of disappointed that Gilbert had so readily turned Alfred's accusation down. Did the idea disgust him that much? Matthew glared glumly down at his lap; it wasn't like it mattered anyway. It wasn't like he had a "thing" for Gilbert or anything…

Alfred continued to guffaw in the corner and Gilbert looked considerably awkward. He was saved from saying anything however, by a nurse barging in, telling them to quiet down. She also said that, since he was awake and feeling better, Matthew could be discharged after a few hours; it had only been a minor concussion. It was only because he had taken so long to wake up, that the hospital had been concerned in the first place.

The three visitors were soon forced to leave, but not before his mum promised to come and pick him up at six. The room fell quiet; only the occasional nurse coming in to check up. The soft beeping noises were his only company.

It was going to be a long three hours…

 **A/N Sorry this chapter is a bit short. I've started to write another story along side this (which I will start to release when I've written enough), and, coupled with school work, updates will probably slow down a bit. I'll try and update at least once a week though. Thank you for your support. Especially justlikeCanada who has reviewed on pretty much every chapter so far. (Thank you!)** **Please don't hesitate to tell me if you find any mistakes!**


	11. Skiving

**Chapter 9**

It was Thursday, and Matthew has resigned himself to another long, boring day at home. Despite being strict, his mother could also be very overprotective, and apparently, 'three days off school' was the least she was letting him get away with.

Tuesday had been okay, he guessed; it was nice to get a break every once in awhile. But Wednesday was already getting dull, and by now, Matthew's head was feeling fine, and this all felt a little unnecessary. Gilbert only had two weeks here. And Matthew felt as if these two days alone had been wasted. He wanted to be where Gilbert was, spend every second he could with him! Because…after this… they may not ever see each other again.

Matthew rolled over on the sofa, and stared blankly up at the ceiling, book forgotten. He felt like just making stupid noises. He could throat sing! Or he could paint a picture of a throat…? What was there to _do_ in this house?!

Bang! Bang! Bang! Matthew jumped, and all the stupid thoughts flew from his head. Was that the door! Who in the name of maple knocks that loudly!?

He quickly heaved himself off the sofa and scurried towards the front of the house, only then realising what a mess he was. He'd woken up after the others, so hadn't deemed it necessary to get dressed.

Or brush his hair.

Or clean his teeth.

He swore under his breath as he desperately tried to flatten that one curl on top of his head, but to no avail. Who was even knocking at ten in the morning on a school day?

The latch was lifted, and the door swung open.

"G-gilbert?"

And it was him, standing there on the doorstep, smirking.

"Hiya birdie. I figured you'd be bored on your own, so I awesomely came to skive with you!"

"What-?" Matthew was dumbstruck- no-one had ever done something like this for him! Ever. And he didn't know how to react. Gilbert wanted to risk getting into trouble. For him? "W-what about school?" He stammered out.

"Ah, school is unawesome anyway. I don't care." Matthew hurriedly moved aside as Gilbert stepped in. He couldn't help warily glancing up and down the street before he shut the door, just in case the headmaster was stalking them or something.

"Sooooooo…" Gilbert turned round the speak as the door closed with a click behind them. "What do you vant to do?"

T

The game of monopoly was balanced on the coffee table, and Gilbert sat slumped on the couch. They hadn't had many imaginative ideas, but still, Gilbert would take this over school any day; Monopoly was actually fun, once you got into it...

Matthew had decided to make some hot drinks, leaving Gilbert alone. It was partly to warm them up a bit, since Gilbert had somehow managed to break the heating when he'd attempted to turn the thermostat on. The boiler was now making a slightly worrying ticking noise and he really didn't need any more breakages on his account… the TV was unawesome enough…

Matthew had been gone awhile with the drinks, so Gilbert decided to go check on him. Heaving himself from the sofa, he made his way to the kitchen, being careful not to trip over the old wires that had yet to be removed and-

Oh!

Thump! The two boys collided in the doorway, Gilbert stumbling slightly, then righting himself. Luckily, Matthew hadn't been carrying any liquids, or else they'd both be soaked. Matthew glanced up awkwardly,

"S-sorry!" He squeaked out, " I-I was just going to ask you if you w-wanted milk or sugar!"

Gilbert stared at him; he looked so adorable, trying to apologise… For once, Gilbert didn't stifle his thoughts. Matthew's still, slightly messy bed hair was sticking up in cute places, and his glasses were on crooked. Gilbert tried to form a sentence,

"Um… just milk vould be gut…"

They were almost nose to nose, except the height difference meant Gilbert towered over him by a few inches. They were so close…

Gilbert could just reach over and... kiss him.

Without thinking, he began to lean forward, and Matthew's eyes widened.

Stop.

What was he doing!?!? He took a step back, and stumbled in his haste, grabbing the door frame to prevent himself from falling. Matthew shuffled nervously in the kitchen.

"Y-you okay?"

"Ja, ja…" Gilbert felt his whole face turn bright red. Mein Gott, that was so embarrassing… what was he doing?! Did he just try to kiss Matthew! He calmed himself; it would do no good to unawesomely work himself into a fit. He nodded briefly, avoiding Matthew's gaze, and shambled back into the living room.

He knew what this meant. It meant he had a crush. Alfred's accusations from the hospital was suddenly buzzing in his ears. He should have guessed it sooner really; he was always tongue tied, or over-panicky around Matthew.

He face planted into the cushions. This was great, just _great._ He had just over a week to try and stifle his feelings, as well as hiding them from Matthew and everyone else in this house. He couldn't let them know.

Sighing, he rolled over onto his back. The clatter of cups from the kitchen signaled that Matthew had restarted with the drinks.

He knew he was gay. And it didn't make life exactly easy for him. The only people that knew were Ludwig and… um… Ludwig. He didn't want to get kicked out of this house because… because…

He really hoped Mattie wasn't homophobic… or anything. That would be unawesome...

Before long, Matthew re-entered with two cups of tea, and placed them on the side table.

"They're hot…" he said simply. "Um… you sure you're okay?"

"Vhat? Oh-!" Gilbert quickly sat up, removing his head from the heap of denial he had created. The cushions flopped onto the floor.

"Ja! I'm awesome!" He exclaimed.

"Hmph," Matthew giggled. "It looked like you were trying to drown yourself in the sofa!"

Gilbert laughed. Honestly, he wondered why he was even worried: Matthew didn't even notice; he could hide this easily! He watched, awestruck, as Matthew chucked.

How could anyone ever forget him? How could he ever have forgotten him?


	12. Pencil Crayons

**Chapter 10**

Gilbert picked up the pencil, twiddling it between his fingers; his blank sheet of white paper seemed to be laughing up at him. Stealing a glance to his right, he noticed that Matthew had already put down the basic lines and was starting to sketch out some details.

Damn his stupid unawesome curse! He really wanted to get this right…

Their topic was portraiture, and their assignment was to draw a picture of the person next to them.

He tried to start with a circle, like Matthew was doing, then add a chin: but it wasn't working. Sketching out an eye, and then another, he began to form the face; he scribbled on a nose. Well, that didn't look right… Maybe if he twisted his head?

"Do you need any help?" Matthew giggled, leaning over his shoulder.

"Vhat!?" He jumped. Why was Matthew always so quiet?! "No! I'm doing awesome!"

"Whatever you say…" laughed Matthew.

Well, it wasn't as if the picture was that bad. The nose was just a little… swollen.

"That's it. I'm starting again!" Gilbert growled, and snatched up the paper, screwing it into a tiny ball. Matthew opened his mouth, surprised, as Gilbert chucked his work into the bin.

"G-gilbert! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to s-say it was bad…" Matthew stuttered, and Gilbert was shocked to see that he looked about to cry. He honestly hadn't been angry because of what Matthew had said! He just… wanted the picture to be perfect… It would have been an insult to Matthew, had it been crude and inaccurate.

Matthew had his eyes closed, so his long lashes were visible, and he quivered slightly. Gilbert wanted to wrap his arms round him, but he couldn't. Not in this crowded classroom anyway. Instead he settled for a sentence,

"Ah, Mattie, no! I didn't throw it away because of anything you said! I threw it away because it was unawesome!"

Matthew sniffled, then looked up, smiling weakly.

"Of course…" He trailed off, looking miserable. Gilbert didn't know what to do to convince him, he didn't understand Matthew's insecurities, and he didn't know what Matthew was thinking.

But he _could_ try and make it better.

"Hey, birdie," he smirked. His partner glanced up, blushing slightly at the nickname. "How about we ditch this unawesome lesson and draw whatever we want?" Matthew stared blankly.

"Look," Gilbert grinned, and picked up his pencil. He focussed on a rather energetic looking boy with spiky blond hair, and doodled an image. In the picture, the boy was grinning like a maniac, and poking the poor boy with the hair clip next to him. It was kind of crude, but Mattie regarded it, and let out a snort. His expression was kind of cute.

"Was that supposed to be Mathias?!" he said, "Here, let me have a go!" He grabbed the paper and drew a stick man with massive eyebrows, eating a scone and drinking tea. The figure was floating above a tiny big Ben, propelled through the air by a black umbrella: Matthew flicked on a bit of blue paint to add some rain.

Gilbert looked seriously into Matthew's eyes.

"Is that the personification of England? Because I swear, I've never seen something so unawesomely British in my life."

"That's- that's Arthur." He choked out.

There was a pause, then they both burst into laughter.

"Ha ha! H-ha!!"

"Kesesese!!!"

"Matthew! Gilbert! Work please!!"

T

Saturday had soon arrived, and Matthew and Gilbert were in Alfred's room, rummaging through his stuff. Unsurprisingly, it had been Gilbert's idea. After discovering who Arthur was, he had developed some strange theory that Alfred would have love notes or something hidden in his room, or, at the very least, a diary.

They'd emptied the chest of drawers, the wardrobe, looked underneath the carpet and the bed, raided his bedside table, and checked inside the mattress. So far, they'd found nothing. Now they were staring warily at the foreboding shelf of books and comics nailed to the far wall. For a sporty person, Alfred sure did own a lot reading material…

Well, Matthew decided, they'd better start. He reached forward to begin checking the books, flipping open the pages of each one, since Gilbert had said there might be something hidden inside. Gilbert grabbed a whole pile, and positioned it on the carpet to read through.

Matthew pulled out another, and another; there didn't seem to be anything… There was a book about the teletubbies, seemingly left over from when Alfred was little; Matthew would have to remember that for blackmail material later…

He snuck a peek behind him. Gilbert was completely absorbed in his work; much more focused than he acted at school, methologicly removing the covers of each volume.

Ever since Thursday, he had been acting differently. Matthew supposed he was… more restrained? Nervous? Whatever it was, he didn't like it. It just felt so... un-Gilbert. He tucked a strand of blond hair behind his ear as he surveyed the other teen.

His hair appeared naturally whiter today… or was that just the light? He giggled at the strange thought; not the most common compliment one could give out.

Gilbert looked up,

"Vhat are you laughing about?" There was a pink tinge to his face, Matthew noted, not easily hidden because his skin was so pale.

"N-nothing!" Matthew dropped the laughter, and started to turn red himself. Why did Gilbert always look so adorable when he blushed, when he just went all blotchy?

He stared across the room at the other boy. And Gilbert stared back.

The tension became too much, and Matthew spun back around with a nervous 'eep!', and focused completely on sorting through the bookshelf.

He pulled out a red book, with an ordinary looking blank cover, and started to flick though… wait a minute! He quickly skimmed over a passage, then turned to wave it at Gilbert.

"Gil!! Look!"

"Gil…?"

"Yeah! Gil! Look, you were right, there is a diary!!!"

"Uh… ja… um, I mean! Awesome! I knew there vould be!!!"

Gilbert rushed over to look, and Matthew turned the pages to the start. Then paused…

"Um... G-gilbert? Is this really okay…?" He shuffled awkwardly, "I mean… this is Alfred's…"

Gilbert smirked,

"What he doesn't know, won't hurt him." They looked at each other, then Matthew glanced pointedly at the trashed room.

"About that theory…" he muttered. "I'm not sure he'd be completely unaware..."

T

" 'ave you told him yet?"

"Shut up frog!"

"But, mon Ami! He's probably crying his little heart out right now! You must console him!"

"I said shut it snail eater!" He paused. "No… I haven't told him…"

Arthur frowned, and moved to flick some hair from his face. The strong breeze ruffled his jacket, even within the shelter of the bus stop, making him shiver, and hug the course material closer to his chest. The graffitied walls of the plastic box made an unpleasant meeting place, but the rain refused to relent. They were stuck here.

Francis just shrugged in his fashionable coat, and gave Arthur a glance which, for all he cared, could've meant anything from 'I completely understand' to, 'I'm actually just here to rape you'.

Why was he even here? He honestly couldn't care less anymore; he was distracted… The look on Alfred's face when he… he didn't want to think about it.

"Arthur…" Sighed Francis. "When are you going to say?"

"When I bloody care!!" He snapped. That was a lie.

He wasn't ever planning on telling Alfred anything. Not. One. Bloody. Thing.

"Honhonhon… well, if you do not care…then maybe you and I…?" He left the question hanging, and Arthur hit his shoulder out of reflex.

"Ow!" The french teen yelped. "That was uncalled for Arthur!"

Arthur chuckled at how high pitched his whining was, then frowned when he truly registered what Francis was implying.

"Bastard…" he muttered.

A bus whizzed past, spraying their legs with rain water, and Arthur choked back his sentence.

"It eez not a joke, Arthur…" hummed Francis.

"I didn't believe it was. Why do you think I hit you?"

The other boy mimed a hurt look, but it was half hearted.

They were silent for a while longer after that, watching the cars drive past: locked in their own worlds. Arthur thought about Alfred; the expression on his innocent face, the broken conversation afterwards.

Francis thought about Arthur's lips, little known to the English boy.

"Did you… enjoy it?" Whispered Francis, and for once in his life, he looked insecure, unsure about the answer the other would give.

"I...I…"

"Oui…?"

"I bloody don't know you git!" Arthur coughed, face turning red. This time, he was telling the truth. He honestly didn't know.

He didn't know whether hurting Alfred was worth it.

 **A/N This is more of a filler chapter, I suppose. So sorry about that. I'm wondering whether you enjoy all the drama with Arthur, Francis and Alfred. If you don't, I'll cut some out and focus more on the prucan.** **Thank you so far for reading and reviewing! Still my first story, so any feedback is much welcomed!**


	13. A not so awesome day

Chapter 11

"'Today Arthur shout ed at me. It was uncool.

I had some piza for dinner. Meat piza is my favorite, but we didnt have any.

Wensday. Today scool was boring. I hate math. Arthur told me it is "maths" in England. I told him that was stupid cos if he was right, why would the Americans have changed it?'"

At this point, Gilbert spluttered slightly, and coughed into his fist. Even Matthew had to admit it was a little funny, as he giggled slightly, face pressed against the duvet. He nudged Gilbert to carry on.

"'I don't like Francis.' Hey! He's not that bad!"

"Shhh! Carry on!"

The German shuffled slightly on the American's bed, rustling the pages of the red notebook.

" Fine… Wait, where was I? Mein Gott this is so unawesome…

' I don't like Francis. He sucks and is trying to steel Arthur. I bet he's trying to be a bad person.'."

"Well…" murmured Matthew, "I'm not sure whether I can disagree there…" Gilbert looked at him, scandalised, but continued reading.

"' One day I will marry Arthur so there francy! I will have him to my self!'"

There was a pause. Then...

"Ha...Ha… Hahaha!"

"Keseseseses!!!!"

"Oh my god that's brilliant!!!" Matthew spluttered between breaths, "When was this written!?"

"Like- " Gilbert grinned, and flipped over the cover, checking the date, "Like, eight years ago! Kesesese!"

"Oh my god! Ha ha!" Matthew repeated, "We HAVE to keep this! This is perfect!"

"They were engaged from the start!" Laughed Gilbert.

They collapsed backwards onto the bed, sniggering uncontrollably, Gilbert's arm underneath Matthew's neck. Matthew smiled, snuggling closer until…

"Gilbert!"

The German boy started, bashing his head on the wooden headboard with a crash.

"Wha- ow- what?" He jumbled out.

"Alfred, Gilbert! Alfred! He'll be back in half an hour and the rooms a tip and it took us two hours to mess it up that much and we're all going to die and Alfred hates other people going through his stuff! What are we going to do!!!"

Gilbert's red eyes were blank. He stared at the Canadian.

"I… Don't believe you've ever awesomly spoken so much…"

"No time for that! We have to hurry!!!"

Gilbert was dragged up by the shorter boy, and they were piling books before he could say 'awesome'.

Let's just say, under the bed made an excellent last minute storage space. They could sort the rest out later...

T

The metal radiator rattled next to him, wafting jets of hot air into the damp room. He was lucky, he supposed, to be sitting so close to the one heart source in the room. Yet he didn't feel it. Matthew shrugged off his blazer; it was too warm now anyway, and scribbled down some more notes.

He felt a scratch on the back of his neck as the idiot behind him threw yet another scrap of paper. Hunching his shoulders, his attempts to ignore the disturbances went unnoticed by the rest of the class.

"Pssst!!" The kid whispered.

God stop it! He wanted to scream, the boy just wouldn't shut up! tried to interrupt the teacher's lecture. All he wanted to do was listen to the teacher's lecture uninterrupted: or just end this day and read! Go curl up somewhere in a corner, block out all the unnecessary people and BE ALONE.

"Pssst!!" He tried to concentrate on the equations and formulas and tumbling bits of numbers and squares, but his mind was blank, distracted. He usually got this stuff! He cursed his luck: the one moment in his desperate life that he finally got noticed, and it had to be now.

The lesson progressed slowly, and as the hour struck three, Matthew was in a furious mood. He wanted to attack something. Someone! It was most unlike him... He scowled at the paved courtyard as he made his way to the heavy iron gates that marked the entrance to this prison. Gilbert would probably be waiting there, as they had arranged.

"Hey birdie!" Yelled Gilbert, as he approached. Several people turned to stare, and Matthew shied away from their sneering faces.

"Shhhh!" He hissed, as Gilbert came within earshot, "You can't just shout everything Gilbert!" The other boy paused for a sec, then broke into a smirk,

"Why shouldn't everyone bear witness to our awesome love!"

"Let's go home." Replied Matthew stiffly. He really wasn't in the mood for Gilbert's teasing, and he turned to stare in the opposite direction, narrowly missing Gilbert pulling his hair in embarrassment.

For most of the journey back, they marched in silence, only punctuated by the occasional awkward sentence of small talk.

"How was school?"

"... Fine."

"I couldn't find you at lunch, where were you?"

"Library."

" Sooo… Ze weather is pretty unawesome today…"

Matthew scoffed; so they had resorted to discussing the weather now had they? What had happened to yesterday, when they'd been happily messing about together in art?

"I mean, ...

...Go to the cinema with me!" Blurted Gilbert.

There was a pause… and then,

"What??" Squeaked Matthew, abruptly dropping his keys. They fell to the floor with a clatter, not that the two of them noticed. The street was completely still except for their breathing, slow and drawn out, quick and heavy. Matthew felt his face flush: he felt hot and cold all of a sudden, like someone had messed with his internal heating system and broken it. Was he meant to be reacting like this?! Gilbert's face was blank as he opened his mouth to speak,

"To hang out." He said.

Oh.

Oh…

Yes. Of course. For a second, Matthew had assumed… it had sounded like… Never mind.

"I-I…" He was stuttering again, but not out of nervousness. "I- could… I've got work to do as well though…"

All he felt was a sudden weight of depression and resignation. It wasn't as if he didn't want to go… but…

"Awesome!"

"Huh?" Matthew stared up at the other boy. Gilbert's face had broken into a massive grin, red eyes practically illuminating the street with pure joy, and at that moment, just like a scene from a film, the sun broke through the clouds, lighting up his angular features.

A faint breeze tickled Matthew's cheek as he stood stiffly, and white hair jumped and danced around Gilbert. If anything, his smile stretched wider.

"I said awesome, birdie. We'll go after school tomorrow okay?"

Matthew was possessed by the moment.

"Yes... Anything…" He whispered, and let show the faintest of smiles.

"That's the first time you've smiled all day Birdie."

"And I'm going to need some extra strong suncream if this keeps up."

"Like, really unawesomely strong."

 **Thanks so much for the new review. It was a huge surprise, and I had honestly given up on this story until it was posted. Thanks everyone for their support, and I might actually think about continuing this now, so let's see! : )**


	14. A Star-tling Discovery

There was only a small cinema in their town, but it was smart and new, and a favourite hang out spot for many teenagers from school. Matthew didn't know how Gilbert had found out about it, since it hadn't existed when he'd last been here. They walked side by side down the pavement together, wearing only jackets this evening, as the consistently cold and wet weather had broken its pattern, and instead had decided to grace them with a burst of sunlight. It was only a 15-minute hike, but Gilbert had exhausted almost half a bottle of sun cream covering himself up. It made Matthew chuckle, watching him squirm at the greasiness; this was something he hadn't known about his friend, since they'd never lived together back then.

"Vhat are you laughing at?" Said Gilbert, as they passed by the shopping centre. Matthew smiled, and reached his hand up to Gilbert's face. He gently rubbed off a smear of white.

"You had sun cream on your nose." He said. Gilbert was quiet for once, turning that adorable shade of pink, and shuffling to walk just that little bit closer to Matthew.

They reached the cinema, and Gilbert made Matthew wait in the foyer, as he didn't want to ruin the 'Awesome Surprise'. Matthew humoured him, yet it was pretty obvious by the posters adorning the walls what they would be watching. His hands were resting in his pockets, to prevent the bulging bag of homemade popcorn from being spotted by any of the assistants. His mother was a firm believer in the tyranny of overpriced branded cinema popcorn. He glanced up with a nostalgic smile as Gilbert came back over to him, clutching a brightly coloured bag of sherbet sweets anyway.

"Vouldn't want to look suspicious now, vould ve Birdie?" He grinned. Matthew beamed a conspiratorial grin back. Now this was just like old times.

They made their way into the screening room just as the lights dimmed and people were quieting down, only the rustle of plastic wrappers and the odd whisper to be heard. There were a few people from school that Matthew recognised, and it were moments like these that made him so very glad that no-one knew who he was. The two of them slipped into the back-row seats (which were surprisingly still empty) and made themselves comfortable.

"Have you guessed what film ve're seeing?" Said Gilbert in hushed tones.

"Shhh!" Replied Matthew, finger to his lips. "Maybe…" He smiled.

When the music blasted out of the speakers and the audience applauded, Matthew glanced back round to look at Gilbert again, who seemed to be trying not to look too pleased with himself.

"I've been so looking forward to seeing this," He hummed, "Star Wars has always been one of my favourite movies."

"I remember," Said Matthew. "You used to have one of those plastic lightsabers, and you'd bring it to school and whack people with it."

"Shhh!" Hushed Gilbert, repeating what Matthew had said just minutes before. "You'll miss ze awesome film!"

It was a great film, full of action and suspense. Although Matthew would be reluctant to admit it, he was actually quite chuffed that Gilbert had picked this one; it was something he had been planning to watch eventually as well. He had no idea how he was going to explain it to Alfred though, they had been going to see it together.

All was going swimmingly until about half six, when the movie had almost finished. There were some girls, maybe their year, maybe the year below, sitting in the row in front of them. Throughout the duration of the film, they'd acted generally disinterested: sneaking out their phones to send messages or chewing on gum and chucking popcorn. Matthew had been able to cast a blind eye before, way too engrossed in the action on screen. Now though, they'd turned around, and for the first time, noticed the two boys behind them.

At this point, Matthew felt he should be more specific with himself: they'd noticed Gilbert. The brown-haired girl with the pointy nose giggled, catching his eye, then turning back to speak rapidly into her blonde friend's ear. She then spun back again, batting her eyelashes and looking for all the world like some shuddering, broken video clip. Matthew strained to ignore them again, but it was difficult, especially when his friend beside him seemed to be basking in the attention. When both of them turned round the third time, Gilbert flashed them a smirk, and they both dissolved into fits of giggles.

Matthew scowled, and shifted his arms, so they were crossed against his chest. He had missed the last few minutes of dialogue and had no clue what was going on anymore. He couldn't concentre if he tried. The last 10 minutes of the film were a blur of lightsaber battles, tittering girls and Gilbert's obnoxious white hair.

The second the credits began to roll, Matthew stood up abruptly.

"Let's go." He said. Gilbert followed without question, and they left the cinema.

"Did you see those chicks, Birdie?" Said Gilbert with a smile, once they were back out on the streets. "They were so unsubtle- totally into the awesome me!"

"They were kind of hard to miss." Replied Matthew with a frown.

"No kidding! They were sort of sveet through, don't you think?"

Matthew realised why he was suddenly so frustrated: he was jealous. Jealous of the way Gilbert could just waltz into a room and capture everyone's attention with one glance from those captivating eyes. It was just like with his own brother. When they'd found each other after all those years, Matthew had been ecstatic! Finally! He's thought. Finally, someone who will be my friend, spend time with me, love me unconditionally. He adored his brother, but that original, hopeful, childish mindset was long gone. He would always be in Alfred's shadow, and now it was the same with his only friend. Just like before, all he felt at first was exhilarating joy, that someone had noticed him. But Gilbert wasn't like him. He had better goals in life, and eventually, better people to be around. There was Francis now, and maybe Antonio one day as well. Maybe he would end up dating or even marrying one of the girls from the cinema. And Matthew… would be left in the dust.

In a spit of sudden rage, Matthew threw out a question. Then immediately regretted it.

"I suppose they were. I think they go to our school, would you date one?"

He felt his face flush with colour, but stubbornly didn't look at Gilberts face, dreading what he'd see there. He walked a couple more steps before realising that no one was beside him. Stopping himself, he turned back, eyes wide.

Gilbert stood still a few feet back, as if he'd hit an invisible set of traffic lights. The expression he was pulling looked a little constipated, a little bewildered. Was it something Matthew had said? Did he offend him somehow? God, this was why he had no friends!

"Y-you okay?" He stammered.

"Ya… ya." Gilbert said, hesitating. "Just…uh Matthew," Matthew nodded. "Don't know how to break this to you, but…'

'Sort of not into girls. Ya."

Gilbert fiddled with his scarf, and a breeze blew in, flicking strands of blond hair across Matthews face. Generally speaking, he was not one to experience moments of brain-dead like this, but he was stuck in a state of bizarre confusion. Where was his voice when he needed it?

"Wh… what?" Ah. There it was. He was always proud of his extensive vocabulary.

"Sheisse, I knew I shouldn't have said anything. Bitte nicht- please. Don't say anything. Vhat I meant was- I mean. Ya. Sheisse. Verdammt!" The vulnerability he had briefly displayed quickly morphed into anger, and he looked about ready to storm off. Matthews thoughts raced. The teasing about Arthur and Alfred had all been in good fun, but surely Gilbert realised that it also held a semblance of truth. Matthew wasn' just mocking his brother, or Gilbert. He wasn't like that.

"Wait! Stop, Gilbert." He spluttered. Gilbert silenced himself, looking wary. "T-that's fine." He continued, "I'm glad you told me. I won't- I won't… say anything, if you don't want me to. That's fine."

"Danke." Said Gilbert quietly. Nothing more was said as they walked back together.

...

Back home, his mother had cooked dinner for them all: Roast chicken with potatoes and green beans. Gilbert picked at the food, although Matthew wasn't entirely sure whether that was due to their abrupt conversation earlier or Gilberts particular fondness for baby chickens. Nevertheless, Matthew felt terrible. He should have replied with something more supportive than what he did- he was just surprised and confused, and maybe slightly relieved, not to mention betrayed. No, he shouldn't be feeling betrayed! That was wrong… it was just, it wasn't something he automatically associated with his memory of Gilbert, and seeing it changed slightly, suddenly knowing of something that was such an important part of Gilbert's life, shuck him a lot. It made him realise just how little he knew about his so called best and only friend. Hell, they'd only known each other for a total of 6 months and just over a week. That was nothing. They were practically strangers.

Alfred chattered on, oblivious to the tense atmosphere, clattering his knife and fork against the plate. Football. Arthur. Lessons. PE. Arthur…His mom nodded along but kept sneaking glances at Gilbert's not really emptying dishes.

"Is everything alright Gilbert?" She inquired, ever concerned. "Did you boys enjoy the film?"

"It vas great, danke, Ms Villiams."

"Yeah," Agreed Matthew. "We watched Star Wars, the new one."

"What!?" Exploded Alfred, jumping up from his seat, "You're kidding! I can't believe you watched that without me!"

"Sit down Alfred," Scolded Ms Williams. "You can go with me next week if you're that concerned about missing out." Alfred scowled and sat down again, surely _delighted_ at the prospect of going to the cinema with his mom.

"That's fine. No bother." He huffed.

"Sorry." Said Matthew. "I wasn't sure what film we were going to watch until we got there. Anyway, I thought you were going to go with Arthur." He looked across the table and caught Gilbert's eye. Gilbert stared down at his vegetables.

"I was," Said Alfred, "But I don't really feel like asking him anymore. Not sure he'd want to go with _me_."

Matthew noticed that slight emphasis on the 'me' and realised what had probably happened.

"Well," He began, still searching for Gilbert's attention, "I think you should ask anyway. _I completly support your relationship_."

A bewildered expression appeared on his brother's face, and he muttered a confused 'thanks'. That wasn't what he was aiming for though. From beneath his pale eyelashes, Gilbert's eyes flicked up, and connected with Matthews.

He felt himself let out a sigh of relief. 'Thank you', they seemed to say. Good. Gilbert understood.

 **Please excuse my awful, awful chapter title pun.**


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